Attacker of Pope John Paul II removed from Turkish town ahead of Leo's visit: media

A man who attacked Pope John Paul II in 1981 was escorted from the Turkish town of Iznik on Thursday ahead of Pope Leo XIV's visit there, Turkish media reported.

In May 1981, Turkish national Mehmet Ali Agca fired several shots at Pope John Paul in the Vatican's St. Peter's Square, severely injuring the pontiff.

On Thursday, Turkish media quoted him as saying he hoped to meet Leo "for two or three minutes".

But he was removed before the pope's arrival, according to Halk TV.

Following his attack on John Paul, Agca was handed a life sentence in Italy, which he ended up serving in Turkey's capital Ankara. He was released in January 2010 after 29 years in jail.

John Paul visited him in prison in December 1983, where he repented for the crime but did not specify his motives.

Turkish media quoted the man in Iznik as saying that he wanted "to welcome the pope. I hope we can sit down and talk in Iznik, or in Istanbul, for two or three minutes".

The US pontiff is currently visiting Turkey as part of his first trip abroad as leader of the Catholic Church.

His stop in Iznik will mark the 1,700th anniversary of the First Council of Nicaea, a gathering of bishops in the year 325 that resulted in a statement of faith still central to Christianity.